Financial derivative markets have enjoyed tremendous growth and innovation in the past two decades. Their development has been nothing short of phenomenal. This poses important questions for economists as to how they effect the related underlying financial markets, and the economy in general. However, the ability of economists to research this growth has been hampered by their rapidly changing form and applications, and by the lack of available data on many of their component markets. This paper attempts to draw together some of the issues and to explore the possibilities.